Artemis Fowl

The Lost Colony

When demons begin appearing on Earth unpredictably, foreshadowing a cataclysmic breakdown of their magic, Artemis and his friends face a new foe--a twelve-year-old girl whose intellect just might match Artemis's own--as they try to prevent a catastrophe.

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Goodness, how DO people come up with such great story ideas? It isn't fair! I liked this book overall, but I felt that we've gone through the same thing with Holly several times. I was also rather disappointed with the ending, feeling that it was unfair to Artemis's parents. But . . . twins?! Can't wait to see what happens next!

Wow. Just...wow.
This might be one of the best books in the series so far. I can't help looking back on the first book and comparing how the characters were then to how they are now. The character development is insanely good. Who Artemis Fowl was four books ago is not who he is in The Lost Colony. He has changed extensively, and grown so dynamically. The power Colfer has over his characters is amazing, and yet at the same time, the characters still run things. Holly Short and Butler also get their fair share of development, and it really adds to their color scheme as characters (particularly in Butler's case). As with almost all the Artemis Fowl books, the new characters tend to be exciting and add additional camaraderie to the cast. Minerva is one of them, and so is N'01. And yet, it is so fitting that this series is the "Artemis Fowl" series. Because despite all the additional faces, the story has always been about Artemis Fowl and who he is as a person. Colfer hasn't lost that, and I hope that doesn't change as I finish the rest of the series (which I will definitely be doing).
The ending is fantastic and hits right in the feels. The last third of the book...crazy good. Crazy.

Super fun read! I'm loving the Artemis Fowl series, and it just keeps getting better. I AM SO EXCITED ABOUT MINERVA! :D She's such a funny character and I love the way she and Artemis get along; I hope we will see more of her. At first the ending made me sad, but now I think the time thing will make it more interesting to see his family dynamic and how it impacts Artemis. I love the change Artemis goes through the series so far. It's amazing how he goes from villain to hero.

I remember reading the first Artemis Fowl book when it was new and describing the fun blend of action and humor as having the appeal factors of a "Captain Underpants for teens"--equal parts smart and silly, rebellious and undermining of social norms, championing youth as intelligent and capable, and full of adventure and discovery.
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I've been slowly working my way through the rest of the series since--I grab one every so often when craving some reliable storytelling fun--and have seen the character grow and mature. When I started The Lost Colony it popped into my head that I needed to update my appeal factors description to "Doctor Who for teens" (not that Doctor Who isn't already for teens). Compared to that first book, this one has less bodily function humor and more high-tech action, less idolization of criminal enterprises and more interest in relationships, caring, and compassion. And, as always, it's a great time.

Demons begin to appear on earth in random times and places, and the island where live is dragged back to earth as the space/time stop unravels. A leader amongst the demons would have them kill all the humans and anyone else in the way. Something Artemis, Butler and Holly Short plan to stop.

Ten thousand years ago, humans and fairies fought a great battle for the magical island of Ireland. When it became clear to the fairy families that they could never win, they decided to move their civilization underground and keep themselves hidden from the humans. All the fairy families agreed on this, except the eighth family, the demons. The demons planned to lift their small island out of time until they had regrouped and were ready to wage war on the humans once more. However, the time spell went wrong, and the island of Hybras was catapulted into Limbo, where it has remained for ten thousand years. Now the tainted time spell is deteriorating and demons are being sucked back into the present space and time. The fairy council is concerned about this and is monitoring any materializations. But when the spells deterioration accelerates, the materializations become unpredictable. Even the fairy scientists cannot figure out where the next demon will pop up. But someone can. Artemis Fowl, teenage criminal mastermind, has solved temporal equations that no normal human should be intelligent enough to understand. So when a confused and frightened demon pops up in a Sicilian theater, Artemis Fowl is there to meet him. Unfortunately, he is not the only one. A second, mysterious party has also solved the temporal equations, and has managed to abduct the demon before Artemis can secure him. Once again, Artemis will have to pair up with his old comrade, Captain Holly Short, to track down the missing demon and rescue him, before the time spell dissolves completely and the lost demon colony returns violently to Earth.